QUESTION
Is there a relationship between NBA player’s salaries and how efficient they are for their teams during the course of their contracts?
HOW I CHOSE MY CULMINATING TASK TOPIC
When choosing this topic I thought to myself that it would make the most sense to choose something that I am interested in. I have been a fan of basketball and the NBA for years now and I thought this would be a great topic because it is a topic that one can easily access information too, and it is a topic that I would enjoy looking up information for and I would find it interesting.
HYPOTHESIS:
I believe that yes, there is a strong correlation between how much an NBA player is paid and their productivity towards their team during the duration of their contracts.
· The more productive and valuable a player is to his team, the larger his contract · Some players are more helpful to their teams in other areas other than scoring (Rebounding, Defense, Playmaking abilities etc.) and receive a large contract because of how valuable they can be to their team in these areas
Because NBA players are all diverse and have strengths and differences in different areas, I will look into their overall player efficiency ratings to determine how productive a player is to their team. The NBA efficiency statistic is a combination of all the recorded statistics in an NBA game both positive and negative. The formula for the player efficiency rating is:
[(Points + Rebounds + Steals+ Assists + Blocks) – (Field Goals Att. – Field Goals Made + (Free Throws Att. - Free Throws Made) + Turnovers] = PER
NBA seasons that I will be looking at to prove the correlation are as followed:
· 2008-2009 NBA season · 2009-2010 NBA season
To prove my statement I will take the top 20 earning players over the past two NBA seasons and their graph them to see if their player efficiency ratings show that they are deserving of their contracts. I will repeat this and graph the player efficiency ratings over the past two NBA seasons to see if there is a trend in the data.
DATA
Top 20 earning players of the 2008-2009 NBA season and their player efficiency ratings:
Player
Salary
Team
PER
1
Kevin Garnett*
$24,751,934
Boston Celtics
21.2
2
Jason Kidd*
$21,372,000
Dallas Mavericks
16.9
3
Jermaine O’Neal
$21,372,000
Toronto Raptors- Miami Heat
15.4
4
Kobe Bryant*
$21,262,500
Los Angeles Lakers
24.4
5
Shaquille O’Neal*
$21,000,000
Phoenix Suns
22.3
6
Allen Iverson*
$20,840,625
Denver Nuggets- Detroit Pistons
15.8
7
Stephon Marbury**
$20,840,625
New York Knicks
N/A
8
Tim Duncan*
$20,598,704
San Antonio Spurs
24.4
9
Tracy McGrady
$20,370,437
Houston Rockets
16.9
10
Ray Allen
$18,388,430
Boston Celtics
17.3
11
Dirk Nowitzki*
$18,077,904
Dallas Mavericks
23.1
12
Paul Pierce
$18,077,904
Boston Celtics
17.7
13
Shawn Marion*
$17,810,000
Miami Heat- Toronto Raptors
16.0
14
Rashard Lewis
$16,447,871
Orlando Magic
16.8
15
Michael Redd
$15,780,000
Milwaukee Bucks
17.9
16
Yao Ming*
$15,106,000
Houston Rockets
22.7
17
Pau Gasol*
$15,106,000
Los Angeles Lakers
22.2
18
Andrei Kirilenko
$15,070,550
Utah Jazz
16.8
19
Amare Stoudemire
$15,070,550
Phoenix Suns
20.3
20
Mike Bibby*
$14,983,603
Atlanta Hawks
16.3
Top 20 earning players of the 2009-2010 NBA season and their player efficiency ratings:
Player
Salary
Team
PER
1
Tracy McGrady**
$23,239,562
Houston Rockets- New York Knicks
12.2
2
Kobe Bryant*
$23,034,375
Los Angeles Lakers
21.9
3
Jermaine O’Neal*
$23,016,000
Miami Heat
17.9
4
Tim Duncan*
$22,183,220
San Antonio Spurs
24.7
5
Shaquille O’Neal*
$20,000,000
Cleveland Cavaliers
17.9
6
Dirk Nowitzki*
$19,795,714
Dallas Mavericks
22.9
7
Paul Pierce
$19,795,712
Boston Celtics
18.2
8
Ray Allen
$18,876,860
Boston Celtics
15.2
9
Rashard Lewis
$18,876,000
Orlando Magic
14.0
10
Michael Redd
$17,040,000
Milwaukee Bucks
12.1
11
Pau Gasol*
$16,452,000
Los Angeles Lakers
22.9
12
Andrei Kirilenko
$16,452,000
Utah Jazz
18.2
13
Kevin Garnett
$16,400,000
Boston Celtics
19.4
14
Yao Ming
$16,378,325
Houston Rockets
N/A
15
Amare Stoudemire**
$16,378,325
Phoenix Suns
22.6
16
Gilbert Arenas
$16,192,080
Washington Wizards
18.7
17
Carmelo Anthony*
$15,779,912
Denver Nuggets
22.2
18
Chris Bosh**
$15,779,912
Toronto Raptors
25.0
19
Dwayne Wade**
$15,779,912
Miami Heat
28.0
20
LeBron James**
$15,779,912
Cleveland Cavaliers
31.1
*Player is in the Top 20 PER for that season
* Player is in the final year of their contract * Player traded during the course of season *Player was waived/ released during the course of the season
ANALYSIS
Upon looking at these results you may notice that the highest payed players do not have the highest efficiency ratings of the other players. Also you may notice that only some of the top 20 PER players are included in the top 20 players with the highest salaries. This means that there are several other more productive players in the league that are playing on a much smaller contracts. Some factors however, that may affect a players efficiency rating throughout the season may include, the player is in the final year of their contract, a player was traded during the course of the season, and that a player was waived during the course of the season. I thought that this is important information to list because when a player is in their final contract year, that means that they are in some cases going to be less productive then they were at the time of recieving their contracts. For example, Jermaine O'Neal and Tracy McGrady, were given their current contracts years ago when they were much more productive then they are today. This was due to their increasing age, and several injuries that have affected their play throughout the years. However, this is not the case for younger players such as LeBron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh who have not reached their full potential as players yet. The three are also the highest out of the 20 on the list for their PER ratings in 2009-2010.
I do not have both Stephon Marbury or Yao Ming's PER rating listed on the tables because they both did not play a game for their teams during the season. Stephon Marbury was released by his team during the season and Yao Ming was out with an injury.
2008-2009 NBA Season
Player
Salary
PER
Salary (x-μ)
Salary (x-μ)2
PER (x-μ)
PER (x-μ)2
Kevin Garnett
$24,751,934
21.2
$6,135,552.15
$37,645,000,185,369.60
2.98
8.8804
Jason Kidd
$21,372,000
16.9
$2,755,618.15
$7,593,431,388,609.41
-1.32
1.7424
Jermaine O’Neal
$21,372,000
15.4
$2,755,618.15
$7,593,431,388,609.41
-2.82
7.9524
Kobe Bryant
$21,262,500
24.4
$2,646,118.15
$7,001,941,263,759.42
6.18
38.1924
Shaquille O’Neal
$21,000,000
22.3
$2,383,618.15
$5,681,635,485,009.42
4.08
16.6464
Allen Iverson
$20,840,625
15.8
$2,224,243.15
$4,947,257,590,321.92
-2.42
5.8564
Stephon Marbury
$20,840,625
N/A
$2,224,243.15
$4,947,257,590,321.92
N/A
N/A
Tim Duncan
$20,598,704
24.4
$1,982,322.15
$3,929,601,106,380.62
6.18
38.1924
Tracy McGrady
$20,370,437
16.9
$1,754,055.15
$3,076,709,469,241.52
-1.32
1.7424
Ray Allen
$18,388,430
17.3
-$227,951.85
$51,962,045,918.42
-0.92
0.8464
Dirk Nowitzki
$18,077,904
23.1
-$538,477.85
$289,958,394,940.62
4.88
23.8144
Paul Pierce
$18,077,904
17.7
-$538,477.85
$289,958,394,940.62
-0.52
0.2704
Shawn Marion
$17,810,000
16.0
-$806,381.85
$650,251,688,009.43
-2.22
4.9284
Rashard Lewis
$16,447,871
16.8
-$2,168,510.85
$4,702,439,306,567.73
-1.42
2.0164
Michael Redd
$15,780,000
17.9
-$2,836,381.85
$8,045,061,999,009.43
-0.32
0.1024
Yao Ming
$15,106,000
22.7
-$3,510,381.85
$12,322,780,732,809.40
4.48
20.0704
Pau Gasol
$15,106,000
22.2
-$3,510,381.85
$12,322,780,732,809.40
3.98
15.8404
Andrei Kirilenko
$15,070,550
16.8
-$3,545,831.85
$12,572,923,508,474.40
-1.42
2.0164
Amare Stoudemire
$15,070,550
20.3
-$3,545,831.85
$12,572,923,508,474.40
2.08
4.3264
Mike Bibby
$14,983,603
16.3
-$3,632,778.85
$13,197,082,173,007.30
-1.92
3.6864
MEAN
$18,616,381.85
18.22
SUM
$159,434,387,952,585.00
SUM
197.1236
MEDIAN
$18,233,167
17.7
/20
$7,971,719,397,629.23
/20
9.85618
MODE
$21,372,000
16.9
STANDARD DEV.
2823423.347
STANDARD DEV.
3.139455367
MAXIMUM
$24,751,934
24.4
VARIANCE
7.97172E+12
VARIANCE
9.85618
MINIMUM
$14,983,603
15.4
2009-2010 NBA Season
Player
Salary
PER
Salary (x-μ)
Salary (x-μ)2
PER (x-μ)
PER (x-μ)2
Tracy McGrady
$23,239,562
12.2
$4,878,070.95
$23,795,576,193,233.90
-7.1
49.773025
Kobe Bryant
$23,034,375
21.9
$4,672,883.95
$21,835,844,410,167.60
2.6
6.996025
Jermaine O’Neal
$23,016,000
17.9
$4,654,508.95
$529,736,256,000,000
-1.4
1.836025
Tim Duncan
$22,183,220
24.7
$3,821,728.95
$492,095,249,568,400
5.4
29.648025
Shaquille O’Neal
$20,000,000
17.9
$1,638,508.95
$400,000,000,000,000
-1.4
1.836025
Dirk Nowitzki
$19,795,714
22.9
$1,434,222.95
$391,870,292,769,796.00
3.6
13.286025
Paul Pierce
$19,795,712
18.2
$1,434,220.95
$391,870,213,586,944.00
-1.1
1.113025
Ray Allen
$18,876,860
15.2
$515,368.95
$356,335,843,459,600.00
-4.1
16.443025
Rashard Lewis
$18,876,000
14.0
$514,508.95
$356,303,376,000,000.00
-5.3
27.615025
Michael Redd
$17,040,000
12.1
-$1,321,491.05
$290,361,600,000,000.00
-7.2
51.194025
Pau Gasol
$16,452,000
22.9
-$1,909,491.05
$270,668,304,000,000.00
3.6
13.286025
Andrei Kirilenko
$16,452,000
18.2
-$1,909,491.05
$270,668,304,000,000.00
-1.1
1.113025
Kevin Garnett
$16,400,000
19.4
-$1,961,491.05
$268,960,000,000,000.00
0.1
0.021024999
Yao Ming
$16,378,325
N/A
-$1,983,166.05
$268,249,529,805,625.00
N/A
N/A
Amare Stoudemire
$16,378,325
22.6
-$1,983,166.05
$268,249,529,805,625.00
3.3
11.189025
Gilbert Arenas
$16,192,080
18.7
-$2,169,411.05
$262,183,454,726,400.00
-0.6
0.308025
Carmelo Anthony
$15,779,912
22.2
-$2,581,579.05
$249,005,622,727,744.00
2.9
8.673025
Chris Bosh
$15,779,912
25.0
-$2,581,579.05
$249,005,622,727,744.00
5.7
33.005025
Dwayne Wade
$15,779,912
28.0
-$2,581,579.05
$249,005,622,727,744.00
8.7
76.475025
LeBron James
$15,779,912
31.1
-$2,581,579.05
$249,005,622,727,744.00
11.8
140.304025
MEAN
$18,361,491.05
19.3
SUM
$5,835,410,289,043,530.00
SUM
434 .34145
MEDIAN
$16,746,000
19.4
/20
$291,770,514,452,177.00
/20
21.7170725
MODE
$15,779,912
17.9
STANDARD DEV.
17081291.36
STANDARD DEV.
4.660157991
MAXIMUM
$23,239,562
31.1
VARIANCE
2.91771E+14
VARIANCE
21.7170725
MINIMUM
$15,779,912
12.1
BIAS
Throughout my research, I only used the past two NBA seasons, so I cannot really say that because of what had occured in these specific seasons happened other past NBA seasons. Also, one might say that some people would be underepresented because I used an arguably small sampling size of 20 players. Some ways I could have eliminated these biases are that I could have looked at players seasons in other past seasons to see if there is still a relationship, or I could have taken more than 20 players with the highest salaries and PER ratings.
CONCLUSION
Upon looking at my research, I can say that I was wrong when determining my hypothesis. And I can say that its not always true that the most skilled and productive players recieve the best contract. Here are some reasons why some of these players may be undeserving of their contracts:
- Players could have been substantially better and more productive when they recieved their contract
- Team could have offered a player that is not very skilled a larger contract by poorly judging his potential
- Team could have offered a player a contract just for the sake of them to stay with the team
- Team could have willingly taken on a larger contract to use in another trade or as cap relief once that players contract is up
- Team could have willingly taken on a larger contract in a trade
- Player could have been significantly injured during the course of the contract
- Player could have been unhappy with the current situation the team is in and therefore not playing to his full potential
BIBLIOGRAPHY 1.) "2005-06 NBA Leaders." Basketball Reference. N.p., 2006. Web. 17 Nov. 2010. 2.) "2006-07 NBA Leaders." Basketball Reference. N.p., 2007. Web. 17 Nov. 2010. 3.) "2007-08 NBA Leaders." Basketball Reference. N.p., 2008. Web. 17 Nov. 2010. 4.) "2008-09 NBA Leaders." Basketball Reference. N.p., 2009. Web. 17 Nov. 2010. 5.) "2009-10 NBA Leaders." Basketball Reference. N.p., 2010. Web. 17 Nov. 2010. 6.) "NBA Salaries." HoopsVibe. N.p., 2007. Web. 17 Nov. 2010. 7.) "NBA Salaries." Inside Hoops. N.p., 2010. Web. 17 Nov. 2010. 8.) "Top 20 NBA Salaries 2009-10." Sporcle. N.p., 2010. Web. 17 Nov. 2010.
Is there a relationship between NBA player’s salaries and how efficient they are for their teams during the course of their contracts?
HOW I CHOSE MY CULMINATING TASK TOPIC
When choosing this topic I thought to myself that it would make the most sense to choose something that I am interested in. I have been a fan of basketball and the NBA for years now and I thought this would be a great topic because it is a topic that one can easily access information too, and it is a topic that I would enjoy looking up information for and I would find it interesting.
HYPOTHESIS:
I believe that yes, there is a strong correlation between how much an NBA player is paid and their productivity towards their team during the duration of their contracts.
· The more productive and valuable a player is to his team, the larger his contract
· Some players are more helpful to their teams in other areas other than scoring (Rebounding, Defense, Playmaking abilities etc.) and receive a large contract because of how valuable they can be to their team in these areas
Because NBA players are all diverse and have strengths and differences in different areas, I will look into their overall player efficiency ratings to determine how productive a player is to their team. The NBA efficiency statistic is a combination of all the recorded statistics in an NBA game both positive and negative. The formula for the player efficiency rating is:
[(Points + Rebounds + Steals+ Assists + Blocks) – (Field Goals Att. – Field Goals Made + (Free Throws Att. - Free Throws Made) + Turnovers] = PER
NBA seasons that I will be looking at to prove the correlation are as followed:
· 2008-2009 NBA season
· 2009-2010 NBA season
To prove my statement I will take the top 20 earning players over the past two NBA seasons and their graph them to see if their player efficiency ratings show that they are deserving of their contracts. I will repeat this and graph the player efficiency ratings over the past two NBA seasons to see if there is a trend in the data.
DATA
Top 20 earning players of the 2008-2009 NBA season and their player efficiency ratings:
Miami Heat
Detroit Pistons
Toronto Raptors
New York Knicks
- *Player is in the Top 20 PER for that season
* Player is in the final year of their contract* Player traded during the course of season
* Player was waived/ released during the course of the season
ANALYSIS
Upon looking at these results you may notice that the highest payed players do not have the highest efficiency ratings of the other players. Also you may notice that only some of the top 20 PER players are included in the top 20 players with the highest salaries. This means that there are several other more productive players in the league that are playing on a much smaller contracts. Some factors however, that may affect a players efficiency rating throughout the season may include, the player is in the final year of their contract, a player was traded during the course of the season, and that a player was waived during the course of the season. I thought that this is important information to list because when a player is in their final contract year, that means that they are in some cases going to be less productive then they were at the time of recieving their contracts. For example, Jermaine O'Neal and Tracy McGrady, were given their current contracts years ago when they were much more productive then they are today. This was due to their increasing age, and several injuries that have affected their play throughout the years. However, this is not the case for younger players such as LeBron James, Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh who have not reached their full potential as players yet. The three are also the highest out of the 20 on the list for their PER ratings in 2009-2010.
I do not have both Stephon Marbury or Yao Ming's PER rating listed on the tables because they both did not play a game for their teams during the season. Stephon Marbury was released by his team during the season and Yao Ming was out with an injury.
2008-2009 NBA Season
2009-2010 NBA Season
BIAS
Throughout my research, I only used the past two NBA seasons, so I cannot really say that because of what had occured in these specific seasons happened other past NBA seasons. Also, one might say that some people would be underepresented because I used an arguably small sampling size of 20 players. Some ways I could have eliminated these biases are that I could have looked at players seasons in other past seasons to see if there is still a relationship, or I could have taken more than 20 players with the highest salaries and PER ratings.
CONCLUSION
Upon looking at my research, I can say that I was wrong when determining my hypothesis. And I can say that its not always true that the most skilled and productive players recieve the best contract. Here are some reasons why some of these players may be undeserving of their contracts:
- Players could have been substantially better and more productive when they recieved their contract
- Team could have offered a player that is not very skilled a larger contract by poorly judging his potential
- Team could have offered a player a contract just for the sake of them to stay with the team
- Team could have willingly taken on a larger contract to use in another trade or as cap relief once that players contract is up
- Team could have willingly taken on a larger contract in a trade
- Player could have been significantly injured during the course of the contract
- Player could have been unhappy with the current situation the team is in and therefore not playing to his full potential
BIBLIOGRAPHY
1.) "2005-06 NBA Leaders." Basketball Reference. N.p., 2006. Web. 17 Nov. 2010.
2.) "2006-07 NBA Leaders." Basketball Reference. N.p., 2007. Web. 17 Nov. 2010.
3.) "2007-08 NBA Leaders." Basketball Reference. N.p., 2008. Web. 17 Nov. 2010.
4.) "2008-09 NBA Leaders." Basketball Reference. N.p., 2009. Web. 17 Nov. 2010.
5.) "2009-10 NBA Leaders." Basketball Reference. N.p., 2010. Web. 17 Nov. 2010.
6.) "NBA Salaries." HoopsVibe. N.p., 2007. Web. 17 Nov. 2010.
7.) "NBA Salaries." Inside Hoops. N.p., 2010. Web. 17 Nov. 2010.
8.) "Top 20 NBA Salaries 2009-10." Sporcle. N.p., 2010. Web. 17 Nov. 2010.